Strings of Rebellion
by TheTwoMind
Summary: Released from the seal, dropped into the opposite world... How will a wild card hold up with her powers altered? Will she give into despair in the end, or will new friends Steal Her Dread?
1. A gift?

**AN: SUP! Guess who's been playing PQ2! THIS GUY! It's given me ideas! Thank you to my Ravioli friend, who gave me suggestions and ideas for the chapter.**

* * *

"It's a shame it came to this, sister…"

"Yes… Only one can be freed…"

"I suppose I will have to acc-"

"Release her."

"S-Sister?! But, this has been your goal for years!"

"I can wait a few more years… Besides, I believe I have found a way to defeat it permanently. I just need some more time… Theo. Release her."

"… Thank you, Elizabeth…"

"Nnn…? Theo…?"

"My Dear Guest, it's time for you to leave… To live once again… Now, go…"

* * *

"Where did you say you found her again?" A gruff voice asked.

"Just outside." A softer, quieter voice responded.

"So you brought her inside… At least we're closing soon…" The Gruff voice muttered.

"What was I meant to do? Wait for you to get back? Call the police?" The Soft voice retorted.

"… Fair point…" The Gruff voice admitted.

"I think she's waking up."

"Nnngh…" The Girl opened her eyes, years of dryness gone in a single motion… "T-Theo…?" She mumbled, having trouble with her blurry vision…

"Theo? Who's that?" The Gruff voice asked… As her vision began to return to normal, she found the speakers…

"My… My friend…" She explained, trying to sit up.

"Don't move. You're pretty hurt." The Soft voice said, coming from a dark haired boy wearing glasses.

"Huh…?"

"Not sure how, but it's like your skin tore when you moved…" The Gruff voice said, coming from a fairly stern looking man. "It's like you've been stuck in place for years or something." He noted. "Do you know your name?" He asked her.

"Mh." She nodded… "It's Hamuko Arisato." She said, knowing her name well.

"I see…" The man muttered, before turning to the boy. "Keep an eye on her. I'll head to the station to see if someone can figure out where she's from." He said, not waiting for an answer before he left the building…

"Sorry about him… He can be a little stern at times." The boy told her. "I'm Akira Kurusu. Call me Akira." He introduced.

"Where am I…?" She asked, her brain all foggy.

"LeBlanc. It's a Café." He explained, pushing his glasses up. "You should get some rest." He told her, somehow knowing how tired she was…

"I guess… A little sleep… Couldn't hurt…" She mumbled, drifting off…

* * *

"_A final gift, for a perfect Guest…_"

"_Theo…?_"

"_Farewell, Hamuko…_"

* * *

"Is she ok?"

"She should be… Could you look after her for a while?"

"I don't have anywhere at the moment, but I should be able to get something decent..." The man's voice muttered.

"It shouldn't be for too long. A few months, most likely." Another voice responded.

"Just get looking…" The man retorted with a sigh.

"Will do." The voice replied, before seemingly leaving…

Hamuko let out a huge yawn, stretching instinctively, before flinching in pain.

"You're awake, again… Hold still, you hurt yourself again…" The man grumbled, helping her lie down again.

"W-Where's Akira-Kun?" She asked confused.

"Hm? He's at school, why?" The man asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He was the one who found me, right…? I wanted to ask him some questions." She explained.

"Ah, that makes sense…" He said, nodding… "Oh, that's right. My name's Sojiro Sakura, but a lot of people call me Boss." He introduced himself. "I'll go call for someone to see if we can get you back to health a little faster, and maybe then we can get you enrolled in Shujin or something." He muttered, heading to the phone.

Hamuko yawned as she dozed off yet agai-

Nononono_nononononono__**nonononoNONONONON-**_

"NO!" She screamed, sitting upright, and ignoring the pain. She frantically searched her clothes, finding her holster empty. "Where is it?!" She exclaimed, searching wildly.

"Calm down!" Sojiro told her, trying to restrain her. "What's wrong?!" He demanded.

"There should be a gun in my holster! I-It's only a model but It's reallyreallyreally important!" She explained in a panic.

"A gun huh… Right, Akira gave it to me. It should be in the safe. Why do you need it?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I had it for the last year of my life… I-It's important…" She explained, shivering…

Sojiro rolled his eyes. "I'll put it in your room when it's sorted out, ok?" He told her, getting a small nod…

* * *

"Well, she seems fine… She just needs to loosen up a little. Her skin's too tight is all." A woman told Sojiro, looking at Hamuko's back.

Sojiro nodded, paying the woman without a word.

* * *

Akira walked into LeBlanc, finding Sojiro moving objects out of a room and into Akira's room. "Need any help?" He offered, getting a nod and a grunt, before joining Sojiro in transporting objects.

"Thanks for that." Sojiro said gratefully. "Feel free to keep whatever catches your eye by the way." He offered, getting a nod.

"This is Akira-Kun's room then…?" Hamuko asked, shakily climbing the stairs.

"You're awake?" Akira exclaimed in shock.

Hamuko nodded, looking around the room curiously.

"Is that a cat?" Hamuko asked, noticing Morgana hopping out of Akira's bag.

"Oh, right, this is Morgana." Akira said, forgetting that Morgana hadn't even known Hamuko was there.

Morgana let out a small mewl as Hamuko looked into his eyes… There was something familiar in those eyes…

"You're like Koro-Chan somehow." She realised.

"Koro-Chan?" Sojiro asked.

"Mh! He was a dog that my club looked after together. Technically he was Ken-Kun's, but since Ken was only a child, we looked after Koro-Chan. He was a really smart dog…" She explained. "Sometimes you could swear he had the mind of a human or something." She added.

Morgana's eyes widened in a panic for a second, before hiding the shock.

"I need to get my homework done." Akira told Sojiro, who nodded, leading Hamuko downstairs.

Morgana looked Akira in the eyes. "She's not normal." Morgana told him, not explaining when he meant…

"What do you mean?" Akira asked confused.

"I don't know… But you need to keep an eye on her." Morgana ordered, as Akira nodded with a sigh, before turning to his homework…

* * *

"_What do you mean gift?!_"

"_You will find out in due time my dear… I will always be here to guide you… I promise…_"

"_Th…_"

"Theo…" Hamuko mumbled, as she woke up… Today was the day she would be enrolled in Shujin… She examined her old School uniform with a smile, removing the SEES band from it, and attaching it to her new uniform's shirt, hidden under the jacket.

"**We should be careful… We're clearly not in Kansas anymore.**" A familiar voice said in the Back of Hamuko's head.

"Orpheus? You're back? I thought you had evolved." She questioned softly, but glad that her Persona had returned to its most familiar form.

"**That is correct. But it seems that with your release from the Seal, I was no longer required as Messiah. Thus, I return to being Orpheus.**" The voice explained, the feminine tone relaxing Hamuko.

"I've missed you…" She mumbled with a smile.

"**As have I. It's good to be back.**" Orpheus responded kindly...

"You ready?" Sojiro asked from the other side of the door.

"A-Almost!" She exclaimed, startled.

"We're leaving soon, so you better be ready in a few minutes." He told her.

Hamuko ran around the room, quickly getting dressed. "I-I'm ready!" She shouted, opening the door.

"Just in time. If I recall, you're in the same classes as Akira. He can take you to your classes for the first few days." Sojiro said, as Akira hurriedly ate Curry for breakfast.

"Fine with me." Akira agreed.

Hamuko smiled nervously, not at all prepared mentally.

"Well, let's get going. The fastest train leaves in five minutes." Akira said, suddenly getting up.

Hamuko hurriedly followed him, trying not to let her fear show… Why was she so scared?! She was the Former Great seal! She could handle school!

"You coming?" Akira asked, somehow suddenly outside the building. She nodded, and ran after him, as they headed to School.

* * *

"Yo, Akira! We down for a bit more explora-" A blonde boy with spiky hair began, approaching Akira, but paused when he noticed Hamuko, who was feeling very overwhelmed for some reason. "Uh, who's that?" He asked.

"This is Hamuko." Akira said. "We'll talk later." He promised, before leading Hamuko to a classroom…

"You must be Hamuko Arisato, right?" The Teacher, Miss Kawakami, asked, getting a nod. "We don't have much room at the moment, so just sit wherever you like until we can get you an assigned spot." She told Hamuko.

Hamuko gave a small nod, heading over to an empty chair and sitting down nervously…

* * *

Hamuko sighed in relief as the last lesson ended for the day… Her brain felt like sludge…

"You ok?" Akira asked her, worried.

"I'm fine… My brain just feels like sludge or something…" She explained, rubbing her temples.

"You ok with heading back on your own? I was planning on hanging out with some friends." Akira asked hopefully.

"Oh, sure!" Hamuko agreed, nodding.

Akira smiled, before walking off.

"…" Hamuko glanced around, before sneaking after him.

"Yo! We gonna clear out more?" The Blonde boy from before asked Akira, accompanied by a Blond girl and a Dark Haired boy, wearing a different uniform.

Akira nodded. "That's the plan." He confirmed, as Hamuko watched from behind a wall, fairly close to them…

"Well, let's get going…" The Dark haired boy requested, his voice weary sounding…

Akira nodded, opening an app on his phone… And then… The world went all blurry…

* * *

"**Oh… This isn't good…**"

Hamuko looked up, finding Akira was wearing a strange uniform, like that of a Phantom Thief from a movie, and staring directly at her… "… Hi…?" She tried, nervously.

"I told you that we should have checked we weren't being followed!" A boyish voice scolded, coming from what looked like a child in a cat costume… "But nooooo! You had to trust her!" It continued.

Akira sighed, scratching his head… "I wasn't expecting this." He admitted…

"W-What is this place…?" Hamuko asked confused, looking around… The World had changed from a street in front of an old rickety shack, to a grandiose museum…

Akira glanced at his friends, whose appearances had also changed…

"She's probably got the App now, so there's no point in ditchin' her, right?" The blond boy pointed out. His outfit had changed to look like a thug of some kind, with a Metal Skull mask on his face.

"That's true…" The Girl agreed. She was wearing a red skin-tight cat suit, with a matching mask…

"I suppose we could ask her to leave? Or she could accompany us…" The other boy suggested. His clothes had changed to something she couldn't pinpoint, but noted the Fox Tail and Mask…

"Hamuko. Stick close to me, ok? I'll explain everything when we find a safe house." Akira told her.

Hamuko nodded, wishing she had her Evoker…

"Ugh, this is exactly why I said you should keep an eye on her!" The Cat… Thing… Complained.

"No time to whine, we need to move." Akira said, as they all ran off into the Museum, Hamuko running after them frantically.

Akira paused, gesturing for everyone to hide. Hamuko noticed what had to be a Shadow… Despite everything, she smiled… If she could get her Evoker from Sojiro, she could do what she did best… Kill Shadows!

Before she could say anything, Joker shot forwards, grabbing the Shadow by the head, and pulling upwards. "I'LL UNMASK YOU!" In a burst of darkness, the Shadow's true form was revealed… A Pixie!

"Tch, more of these things? I thought they were left in Kamoshida's palace!" The Blond boy complained.

"They were. It's certainly strange…" The Cat thing agreed.

Akira swiftly disposed of the Pixie…

"**Odd… It seems that this world uses Corrupted Personae as Shadows…**" Orpheus noted in Hamuko's head.

'**It's definitely weird…**' Hamuko agreed.

"There's a safe room up ahead!" The Cat Thing pointed out, causing everyone to head inside the room.

Akira turned to Hamuko once they were inside, ready to explain things.

"I'm not sure where to start… Have you heard of pe-"

"I didn't know you could use Personae as well!" Hamuko exclaimed, cutting him off, and shocking everyone.

"A-As well?!" The Cat thing exclaimed in shock.

"Well, I can't use mine at the moment, but…" She mumbled embarrassed. "Who are all of you anyway?!" She demanded to know.

"While we're here, call me Joker." Akira told Hamuko. He pointed at the Blond boy, "Skull." The blond girl, "Panther," the other Boy, "Fox," and then the cat thing… "And this is Mona." He introduced quickly.

"**This is very interesting…**" Orpheus noted, sounding very curious.

"C'mon, let's get a move on." Skull said, as the group of masked Persona users ran out of the safe room, Hamuko staying close to Akir- No, Joker…

Without any warning, a horde of shadows appeared, trapping them within the hallway they had been travelling down.

"Crap! We're effin' surrounded!" Skull cursed, as the shadows got closer…

"Damnit! There's no way out!" Panther realised, panic in her eyes…

"We've come so far…" Fox bemoaned…

Hamuko bit her lip… This was her fault…

"_**I must thank you.**_" A distorted voice said, coming from a man, wearing a golden robe…

"Madarame…" Joker said with a scowl.

"_**With such a weak guest, it was easy tracking your movements.**_" He continued.

"T-This… Is my fault…" Hamuko said, looking down…

"Don't blame yourself." Joker assured her.

"_**Well, as much as you helped me, you know too much. I'll have to dispose of you as well.**_" He decided cruelly…

"N-No…" She whispered, dropping to her knees in shame… From leader of SEES, to… This… "This can't be happening…" She growled. "I can't let this happen!" She exclaimed, wishing she had her evoker…

"**Oh…? Interesting…**" Orpheus' voice whispered, fading away…

Joker let out a smirk as Hamuko began to glow…

"**It's finally time…**"

Hamuko gasped, Orpheus' voice breaking into her skull… "O-Orpheus...?" She cried out, her skin burning bright...

"**Will you allow your Evoker to hold you back? Let twisted desires overpower you?**"

"N-No…" She growled out…

"**Then, allow us to make a new contract… I art thou… And… Thou… Art… I!**" Orpheus roared, Hamuko's skin burning off of her body, metal forcing itself into place, plate by plate…

Eventually, she found the strength to stand, her body resembling Orpheus, with metallic silver barrels over her wrists… She somewhat resembled Aigis, come to think of it… She reached up, and found something on her face, obstructing her vision… "Get off…" She muttered… "GETOFFGETOFFGETOFF!" She screamed, ripping it away, an oily blood splattering the ground…

In a flash of light, Orpheus appeared behind her…

"**Now, show them what happens when they confront a Messiah. The Strings of Fate will play their demise!**" Orpheus commanded, Hamuko grinning violently.

"Let's show 'em what we've got… **_ORPHEUS!_**" She roared, sending out a wave of Fire!


	2. Strings?

**AN: It definitely seems like you guys like this story! Well let's hope you continue to like it!**

The fire rolled over the Shadows, as well as the man in the golden clothes, scorching the gaudy outfit, and destroying the shadows instantly.

"_**MY ROBES! HOW COULD YOU?!**_" The man screamed, glaring at the Former Great Seal.

"_**I am a being you should never have encountered. I am Hamuko Arisato. I am Orpheus, Master of strings. Flee now, and I shall grant mercy upon your soul.**_" Hamuko said, her voice mixing with that of Orpheus…

The man trembled at the sight of her, before fleeing as fast as he could.

Hamuko smirked, before her eyes widened, Orpheus fading away… As she collapsed, she felt something forming onto her face…

"Hamuko!" Joker shouted as she collapsed, picking the girl up in worry.

"She must be exhausted." Mona said, looking shocked.

"We need to get outta here..." Skull said, rubbing the back of his head.

"We're running out of time now…" Panther said with a sigh.

"We still have two weeks, if I recall." Fox noted.

"What I'm saying is that we could have gotten a lot of progress done today!" Panther snapped at the Artist.

"Panther, calm down." Joker ordered, lifting Hamuko into his arms in a bridal carry. "We need to get out of here. We all know how tiring an awakening can be." He reminded her.

"Right…" She nodded, blushing under the mask.

"Let's get going." Joker told everyone, as they raced to the exit, the unconscious Persona User comfortable in their leader's arms.

* * *

"_Now exiting the Metaverse. Thank you for your hard work._" The Metanav announced, as the group returned to the real world.

Akira sighed, checking on Hamuko's condition… It looked like she was going to wake up any moment, so he positioned her into a leaning position.

"Nnnn... What happened…?" Hamuko asked, rubbing her aching eyes.

"You awakened to your persona." Akira said, almost casually.

"Huh…? But I already had Orpheus…" Hamuko muttered, confused.

"**It appears that falling into Despair in that world allows a Shadow Self or a Persona to awaken a new power in the holder… A Tricksters mask…**" Orpheus' voice explained, clearer than ever before…

"Well, I've never seen a persona speak before…" Morgana said, shocking the girl.

"Did… Did he just speak?!" Hamuko asked, shocked.

"We'll explain when we get somewhere more secure." Akira promised her.

"Hey, what do you mean "you've never seen a persona speak"? They talk to us when we awaken them, don't they?" The Blond boy asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Morgana asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"Hideout. Now." Akira ordered, helping Hamuko walk.

"Oh, right. Sorry!"

* * *

"Let's do some introductions." Akira decided, helping Hamuko sit down in the Café, since the usual hideout was pretty full that day.

"I'm Ryuji Sakamoto." The Blond boy introduced himself with a grin.

"Ann Takamaki." The Blonde girl introduced.

"My name is Yusuke Kitagawa." The Other boy said.

"And you already know me and Morgana." Akira finished.

"I'm Hamuko Arisato." Hamuko said, rubbing her forehead lightly. "How was Morgana talking…? And what was that cat monster thing?" She asked.

"I'm not a cat!" Morgana exclaimed. "I'm! Human!" He growled.

"We don't have any way to be certain, but we all believe Morgana's current form is caused by distortions in the Metaverse. Cognition is powerful there." Akira explained.

"I… I don't follow…" Hamuko admitted.

"How people see shit affects how things are there." Ryuji explained casually.

"That… Actually would have been a lot easier to explain." Morgana admitted.

"So… That man sees that shack as a museum?" Hamuko asked.

"Madarame… My Sensei… He steals the art of his students, and claims it for himself… His shack is a disguise…" Yusuke explained…

"There are paintings of former pupils, and he truly sees the world that way…" Ann added.

"I see… But... Why did you all look like that?" Hamuko pondered.

"The clothes we wear there are granted by our Personae. They protect us from Cognitive Distortions." Akira explained.

"So… Shouldn't Morgana be protected from the Distortions if he has a persona?" Hamuko asked.

"I'm not sure… We're all new to this… Even me." Morgana admitted bashfully…

"We've figured out that infiltrating a Palace, that being a manifestation of someone's twisted Cognition, allows us to steal the source of their distorted Desires, forcing their hearts to change." Akira told The Former Seal.

"Why the codenames?"

"Because we're Phantom Thieves! Our Rebellion lets us help people." Ryuji explained.

"The Strings of rebellion…" Hamuko muttered in realisation…

"Eh? What was that?" Ryuji asked confused.

"Orpheus… That was what you meant by Strings of fate…?" She asked out loud…

"Hamuko?"

Hamuko jumped, as Akira snapped his fingers in front of her. "Bwah?!"

"You ok? You were talking to yourself…" Akira asked worried.

"I'm fine…" She mumbled embarrassed.

"Hey, what was with your outfit?" Ryuji asked. "Y'looked like some sorta robot more than a Rebel." He noted.

"Yeah, that's true. It looked pretty painful…" Ann added. "It looked like your skin was burning off or something." She muttered.

"… A robot…?" Hamuko questioned, confusion in her eyes…

"Yeah. Kinda looked like your persona." Akira confirmed.

"Huh… Well, that might make sense…" She mumbled, recalling an odd weight in her body… Was it possible…?

"We should head to Mementos tomorrow to get an idea of Hamuko's combat abilities." Morgana suggested.

"Mementos?"

"It's sort of a training ground." Akira explained badly.

"It's better described as The Palace of everyone. People with twisted desires start to form defined Shadow Selves, and from that, a Palace, though they still take the form of normal shadows." Morgana explained. "We use it as a training grounds, but there's definitely something important there… I'm sure of it." He added, trailing off…

"Hey, earlier you got confused by the speaking persona thing, right?" Ryuji remembered, snapping his fingers.

"Oh yeah, that's right. Carmen spoke to me when I got my persona." Ann added.

"And the same for me with Goemon." Yusuke agreed.

"And with Arsene." Akira confirmed.

"Huh… That never happened for me… I've had my persona for as long as I can remember… Which admittedly isn't long, but…" Morgana mumbled.

"Maybe you awoke it before you lost your memories?" Hamuko suggested.

"Maybe…" Morgana muttered, accepting it was definitely a possibility.

"You should get some rest. We'll hit mementos after school tomorrow." Akira told the girl, who yawned…

"Maybe some sleep wouldn't hurt… So sleepy…" She mumbled, dropping off instantly, head resting on Akira's shoulder.

Akira sighed mentally as time began to slow down…

"_**I am Thou, Thou art I. Thou Hast Acquired a new vow. It shall become the **__Strings__** of rebellion that breakth thy chains of captivity. With the birth of the Universe Persona, I have obtained the winds of blessing that should lead to freedom and new power…**_"

Akira blinked, noting that one of the words had changed… Strings? And Did a Universe Arcana even exist…?


End file.
